INT: Mick Garris

The
last time all-around swell dude Mick Garris offered us a theatrical
release was with "Sleepwalkers"in 1992. So it is with open arms that I greet
Mick's latest theatrical feature "Riding the Bullet",
based on Stephen King's 30 page internet novella and starring
"Skeletons in the Closet"genius Jonathan Jackson. "Riding the
Bullet" appears
to be a gripping, mind-toying, genre character study and I don't
know about you, but I'm all for that. Here's what Mick had to say
about his upcoming horror treat. Take the floor dude!

ARROW:
How long was the development stage on "Riding the Bullet"?

MG:
I downloaded the story the day it was published online, paying my
$2.50 like everybody else. It struck an immediate nerve, and
an approach to turning into a movie bloomed immediately in my
fevered brain. You would not necessarily imagine a 30-page
short story as the basis for a feature film, but I had some ideas. I
optioned the rights from Steve to do the script right away, but I
didn’t really want to tell him too much about what I had in mind
until I had done the script.

I wrote my
first draft in just under two weeks, changing the time period to
1969, and adding a history and a conundrum for the character of Alan
Parker that were not a part of the King story, and yet were very
organic to it. So it was written very quickly… and then we were
unable to sell it. My agent thought we’d probably make a big
money sale to one of the studios, but as it was an unusual kind of
horror film, as much a nostalgic drama as it was a horror film, it
didn’t sell right away. I spent about three years off and on
getting it set up before finally making a deal to do it very
independently for a company called MPCA—best known for comedies
like DUMB AND DUMBER—and then spent another year getting it going
with them.

ARROW:
Good move on casting Jonathan Jackson in the lead. Was he your first
choice?

MG:
I was unfamiliar with Jonathan’s work until I realized that he had
played the boyfriend in INSOMNIA. He has this great
interrogation scene with Pacino that was quite stunning work.
But I didn’t really know him until I met with him on this. But I
must say, I can’t imagine any actor being more right for this
role. He really nailed it. And a true pleasure to work with at
all times. Smart, flexible, well prepared, intuitive. There
were a lot of actors we discussed. Since the film was done
independently, there were a lot of demands for “name” actors for
the key roles. You wouldn’t believe some of the ridiculous,
unbelievably inappropriate actors we had to consider (and, out of
politeness, I won’t mention them here). So we went through a
ton of people before meeting Jonathan, and making that work.
He was a total surprise and relief. His band even did a song
for the soundtrack.

ARROW:
What was the biggest obstacle that arose throughout the shoot and
how did you overcome it?

MG:
Time and money. It was done very quickly, right before
Christmas, in Vancouver. EVERYTHING was tight, and it’s just great
that we had such a terrific crew. We had makeup FX, physical FX,
visual FX, even though they are not a huge part of the film. All of
them are complicated and time-consuming. We had some stunts, a lot
of car work, and complicated schedules.

Because we
got name actors for a lot of the roles, we had to fit them into a
specific shooting period to keep the budget in line. So one
actor might have X number of shooting days over the course of a
week, or two weeks, or whatever compressed schedule it was. So
we couldn’t have cover scenes, our schedule would not accommodate
any changes because it would change the actors’ spreads, and cost
us a lot more.

Because we
shot so many interior scenes, that meant that we were going to have
to shoot, no matter what the weather. That was complicated,
but it all worked out okay. We knew we’d have big weather
issues anyway in Vancouver, but it added to the gloomy atmosphere we
were trying to create.

ARROW: Is
the film gory, axed towards more subtle scares, or a little bit of
both?

MG: There
are some big jolts, I hope, but it’s a quieter kind of horror
film. It’s as much a character study as anything else. When
King read my script, he said something like, “this could be the IN
THE BEDROOM of horror movies.” I think that’s a good
thing, but this isn’t DAWN OF THE DEAD or TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE.
I hope it reaches for an emotional sense of horror and dread, though
we’re not above a cheap coffin scare…

ARROW:
What kind of soundtrack can we expect from the film? Orchestral
score, “metal bands”...please don’t tell me “Hip Hop”.

MG: Actually,
since the film is set in 1969, we were able to get a handful of
songs from the era, and they work out great. Nicholas Pike composed
the score, as he has for most of my films, and some of it is
orchestral, and some of it actually features some screaming electric
guitar. And, not to disappoint you, but RIDING THE BULLET is a
Hip Hop-free zone.

ARROW:
Being that you and Stephen King are close and that he had a cameo in
"Sleepwalkers", can we expect to see him in this film as
well?

MG: I
had written a part for him in the script, but he became quite ill,
and was unable to make it. He was replaced with George Romero,
but then there was a schedule change, and George wasn’t able to
make it. So Matt Frewer came in and did his usual wonderful job. I
don’t know why I felt the need to get somebody really tall for
that part, but…

ARROW: In
your opinion, what scene in "Riding the Bullet" will blow
our genre-fiend sox off?

MG: I
hope that ANY of them will. KNB did the makeup FX, and they are
throughout the film, but perhaps the goriest is a fantasy sequence
where David Arquette’s skull cap comes off. There’s also a
pretty unique attempted suicide in a bathroom early on in the film
that I hope will be effective. And of course, stuff I don’t want
to give away. But it’s not a bloodbath kind of movie.

ARROW:
What kind of distribution will the film get in North America and
when will it be released?

MG: It’s
coming out on about 200 screens in 10 or 12 cities at the beginning
of October. It’s being distributed independently, with a
gradual rollout after that initial release. It requires special
handling, as it’s not your typical genre picture. Again, I
hope and believe that’s a good thing. Some genre fans might
not, though we had a fantastic reception at FanTasia in Montreal a
week ago.

ARROW: I
heard that DESPERATION will be your next project. Where are you with
that right now?

MG: We’re
in pre-production, to be shooting soon in Arizona. It’ll be
a 3-hour movie for ABC.

ARROW: I
yearn for the day where we’ll get an “original material”
script by Mick Garris, shot for the screen by Mick Garris. Will that
day ever come?

MG: God,
I hope so. I have written plenty of original material, but
it’s yet to be produced. Though it’s based on a story by King,
this is the closest yet to an original by me, since so much of it
was not in King’s story, and since it was done on spec. It feels
personal, since I wrote the script as well as producing and
directing.

ARROW:
What was the first drink you ingested at the "Riding the
Bullet" cast and crew party?

MG: Caffeine-free
Diet Coke.

I'd
like to thank Mick for dropping by the site again. The man is always
welcome in my genre shack. I personally can't wait to see this
flick. I don't know why, but it talks to me. Yes. I'm still beating
myself for having missed the "Riding the Bullet" screening
at Fantasia.
Grrrrrrr!